Certain beverage preparation machines use capsules containing ingredients to be extracted or to be dissolved; for other machines, the ingredients are stored and dosed automatically in the machine or else are added at the time of preparation of the drink.
Most coffee machines possess within a housing: filling means that include a pump for liquid, usually water, which pumps the liquid from a source of water that is cold or indeed heated through heating means, such as a heating resistor, a thermoblock or the like.
EP 1 864 598 discloses a coffee machine that is autonomous and that can be mounted onto a docking station. The beverage machine is arranged to be operable whether connected to the docking station or disconnected therefrom.
EP 1 878 368 discloses a beverage machine having a functional block in a housing that is rotatably mounted on a support base. The support base has a power connector for the beverage machine that allows such rotation. The functional block can be designed to be removable from the support base. The support base may have an extension with a power connector for mounting a milk-frothing apparatus thereon.
FR 2 544 185 discloses an old espresso machine in which a hot water, a steam preparation module and a plurality of different coffee preparation modules may be mechanically and electrically connected side-by-side. The aim is to provide a system with a sufficient number of parallel coffee outlets, as required for the normal use in a bar so as to permit preparation of several espressos simultaneously. More recently, a coffee machine having two preparation modules and two coffee dispensing areas has been disclosed in WO 2009/074550.
Likewise, U.S. Pat. No. 6,029,622 discloses a coffee dispensing system having three units made up of two coffee dispensing towers and a warming base mounted side-by-side to one another. The first dispensing tower is adapted for large airpot vessels. The second dispensing tower is adapted for cups. The warming base adjacent to the dispenser towers is configured for maintaining coffee in an airpot vessel or in a cup warm. The dispensing system is powered via a power cord connected to the mains. The dispensing unit and warming base have an internal power interconnection or can be interconnected externally via power cords. Each tower or warming base has its own power switch. The second dispensing tower may be substituted by a coffee grinder or another accessory or attachment.
There are also coffee machines that have an integrated milk frother for the preparation of milk-containing coffee, e.g. cappuccino. For instance, the milk-frother is arranged to intake fresh milk from a milk container and mix the milk with air and steam within a venturi device to dispense via an outlet froth into a user-mug. Examples of such devices are disclosed in EP 0 791 321, EP 1 830 683 and in EP 1 764 014.
WO 2009/074555 discloses a system including a coffee preparation machine that has a platform for receiving a removable milk-frothing jug. The milk-frothing device is powered via a disconnectable strix-type connection from the platform and can be removed therefrom for pouring frothed milk into a recipient.
Despite all the above developments, there is still a need to increase the versatility of beverage machines.